Published September 2005

Plant marks new era
for biotech industry

Snohomish County Business Journal/JOHN WOLCOTT The Pacific Northwest’s first production plant for the FDA-approved biotech drug Leukine is being built north of Lynnwood. The $60 million facility in Opus Northwest’s Northpointe Corporate Campus, under construction for Berlex Laboratories, should be ready by August 2006.

By John Wolcott
SCBJ Editor

The construction of Berlex Laboratories’ new $60 million production plant for Leukine, on a $10 million, 16-acre site at Opus Northwest’s Northpointe Corporate Campus in Lynnwood, marks a new era for the biotech industry in Snohomish County, as well as in the state.

Although the county has been well known for years for its involvement in biotech research, only now has a manufacturing facility for a biotech product become part of the local landscape.

“This is the first full-scale biotech pharmaceutical product manufacturing plant in the Northwest. For the first time, the public will see a new biotech product — Leukine — come out of this plant,” said Daniel Palmacci, project manager for the Berlex facility.

Until now, only small amounts of Leukine have been produced as part of the testing, approval and clinical trials approval process for the federal Food and Drug Administration, with that work being undertaken by Leukine’s developer, Immunex, in Bothell.

When Immunex merged with Amgen, the world’s largest biotechnology company, it spun its proven Leukine product to Berlex for full production.

“Leukine will be a drug that will help many people recover from anti-cancer therapy — including bone marrow transplants — by producing replacement white blood cells to fight off infections that commonly occur. Also, there are strong indications that Leukine may be an excellent treatment for Crohn’s disease, an intestinal inflammation disorder, creating an entirely new market,” Palmacci said.

The shell of the Berlex plant is already finished. For the next year, construction crews will be working on the interiors of the power generation building, administration offices and the two largest buildings, which will house the Leukine production facilities.

Berlex, the U.S. affiliate of Schering AG, Germany’s 154-year-old, $5.8-billion-a-year pharmaceutical giant, has designed its 90,000-square-foot Lynnwood plant for multiple expansions, culminating in a 350,000-square-foot facility to meet market demand years from now.

About 70 employees will work there initially, with as many as 180 expected at the site by 2009. Hiring for the plant start-up already is in progress, since it will take nearly a year to train the staff for their roles.

Snohomish County has 25 percent of Washington state’s biotech and biomedical employment, working at such life sciences leaders as ICOS, Amgen, Advanced Technology Labs, Targeted Genetics, Combimatrix and SonoSite, among many others. Many are based in Bothell’s Canyon Park.

The county is an important part of Puget Sound’s high-tech community, adding to the region’s stature as the nation’s fifth largest biotechnology cluster in America, with 7,600 biotech employees in more than 65 firms, according to a survey by the Milken Institute.

Another study, conducted by the Brookings Institute, estimates that research and development alliances in the greater Seattle area are worth more than $692 million, the fifth largest concentration of biotech assets in the nation.

Back to the top/September 2005 Main Menu